A O K O
by imafangirlforever
Summary: It wasn't the fact that she was reincarnated that scared her. It was the fact that she was born as oblivious, kind-hearted Nakamori Aoko in a world where murder and shady organizations were a day-to-day thing. Plus, well...living a normal life was a bit hard with Kaito Kid as your best friend. OC!Aoko
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Welcome to my humble attempt at an OC in the DC/MK world. Made because we all need a little more Kaito Kid in our lives, not to mention Aoko (and the rest of the Detective Conan girls, tbh) need more acknowledgment. AND this fandom needs more OC stories.**

 **This wouldn't have been published without the encouragement of all my readers from my other stories, so if you're here from Yamuraiha, thank you so much for making me do this! :D**

 **I do not own Magic Kaito or Detective Conan. All rights go to their respective owners. The same applies to all future chapters.**

* * *

 _I_ _t was dark. She was walking through the darkness, one hand shoved into her coat pocket. The other hand was clutching onto a vanilla envelope, her grip on the envelope tightening as she approached the warehouse._

 _It was cold. Freezing, actually. The chilly wind brushed against her chapped lips, and she could feel the wind almost breathing down her neck. She idly wished that she brought a scarf._

 _Her feet stopped in front of the warehouse. She hesitated for a moment before raising her hand against the door, rapping her knuckles against it five times. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the door opened._

" _You're late."_

" _I apologize." She bowed her head._

* * *

A O K O

* * *

.

Nakamori Aoko lived in Ekoda. She was two years old and had a boisterous father by the name of Nakamori Ginzo. She was a cute little girl who referred to herself in the third person and was always present with the sweetest smile and words of encouragement. Overall, she was a good child, her only faults being her temperamental personality, clinginess, and small mischievous streak.

When people looked at Nakamori Aoko, they just saw a slightly intelligent kid who'd do well someday. Maybe she'd even go into the police force, like her father. Or maybe that job was just too perilous for sweet, innocent Aoko. Maybe she'd decide to become something more mundane instead, like a schoolteacher.

Nobody saw the slight shift in her eyes after guests left the house. Not even Ginzo noticed how she would lock herself away in her room and mutter random things in English (not like the man _could_ notice: he was too busy trying to capture the newly acclaimed Kaito Kid).

Little Aoko was a cheerful girl with a big heart, was what other spoke of her. She might not have been a genius like the young Kudo Shinichi or Kuroba Kaito, but she was intelligent enough.

If only they knew.

.

It had taken her a while to realize.

In her defense, Ginzo had kept her inside nearly every day, not wanting for his little girl to be soiled by the outside world. All she knew was that she was "Aoko", or "Ao-chan" if her father was feeling especially peppy. Her father was "Ginzo": that much she had gathered from the many impromptu visits her father's friends would make.

She hadn't even known her _last name_ for the longest time.

Then, she had been introduced to one of her father's friends from work and her whole world flipped upside-down. Ginzo had opened the door, let in some strange man, and proceeded to go upstairs to do something as he left his daughter to entertain the guest. The guest lingered awkwardly at the threshold before Aoko nodded and silently led him to one of the chairs to sit down. "One moment, please," she said hurriedly before whipping around and dashing into the kitchen.

Pausing for a moment, she considered her choices before selecting some small cinnamon cookies her father had bought her. Grabbing one of the more showy plates reserved specifically for guests and set the cookies on the tray. Next, Aoko searched for a glass. There was a moment of victory when her chubby hands grasped the cool handle of a mug. She glanced over at the kettle on the stove ( _tea was_ always _more polite to serve_ ) before shaking her head and filling said glass with cold ice water.

Carefully, balancing the plate on one hand and holding the glass in the other, she returned to where the guest was seated. Aoko set down the plate of cookies in front of the man and handed him a glass of ice water. The man gave her his thanks, setting down both on the table in front of him.

"Hi, Aoko-chan. I'm Kudo Yusaku, it's nice to meet you," the man introduced himself, smiling while patting her head in a gesture of patrilineal friendliness.

 _Kudo...Yusaku?_

Warning bells immediately rung in her head, but she tried to push away her stunned shock. She could do nothing but bob her head, her manners kicking in instinctively. "Nice to meet you too, Kudo-san," she said automatically, beaming at the man. Innocently, she swung her hands back and forth, asking, "Are you one of Papa's friends from work?"

"Yes, I am," he humored her.

"Does that mean you're a p..poriiii-su…" Aoko 'stumbled' over her words. It wouldn't look natural if she was able to pronounce everything correctly at such a young age. She supposed she was convincing enough, as the man gently corrected her.

"Policeman like your father? No," Yusaku shook his head, laughing at the thought. "I help out the police occasionally, but I'm a novelist now." That was the second alarm that went off in her head.

"So you're a detective!" Aoko gasped, clapping her hands delightedly. Inwardly, she was freaking out. If this man was who she thought he was, then she wasn't just dealing with a case of reincarnation. And _that_ discovery, as frightening as it was at the time, would be nothing more than a small bump compared to this problem. She was dealing with reincarnation into a _fictional world_. Or, to be more exact, what she had _presumed_ was a fictional world.

"Well, I wouldn't…"

"Aoko _loves_ reading detective stories!" Aoko allowed for her sapphire blue eyes to sparkle delightedly, and the man seemed to just give up and go with the flow.

"Really, now? That's quite advanced for your age. The only other kid I know who does that is my son, but Shinichi's always been a bit odd." Yusaku chuckled.

...oh _God_ , this was real. This was actually happening. She was in the Detective Conan world. Aoko swallowed and fought the urge to throw up. Her head was pounding as she tried to digest this new information. Detective Conan...back in the day, she had loved anything that dealt with mystery. Her little sister had initially introduced the show to her, and it fascinated her to an extent. She remembered long days when she would simply sit next to her little sister and try figuring out who the culprit was (unfortunately, there were plenty of instances when not enough information was given to the viewer for them to figure the case out, but it was still _fun_ nonetheless).

Her hand was clutching onto the hem of her dress a little bit _too_ tightly, and she forced herself to relax so that Yusaku wouldn't be suspicious. "Well, mysteries are cool!" She chirped. "So your son's name is Shinichi?"

Yusaku nodded, but then her father barged into the room.

"Aoko, where did my notepad go?" Her father asked, putting his hands on his hips as he glared down at his daughter and tried to look menacing. It failed horribly: she knew her father adored her _way_ too much for him to actually be mad at her for more than a few hours. Aoko sent him a bubbly grin and a friendly shrug. She had stolen it a few days ago to practice some kanji and was wondering when he would notice its absence. Luckily, her father had the sense to buy some beginning kanji books after Aoko had pestered him everyday about becoming more literate.

"Ah, Nakamori-keibu," Yusaku greeted, standing up from his crouched position and ruffling Aoko's hair as he turned to face his old friend. "How are you doing?"

Oh, and _then_ it finally kicked in.

Aoko. Nakamori Ginzo. Nakamori.

She was Nakamori Aoko.

She was reborn as a _canon character._ A girl who quite literally was left in the dark for the majority of the series, a girl whose best friend would become a _phantom thief_ who waltzed around with the police in a white tuxedo. She was in a world where there was literally a crime _every episode_ , where there were literally two ( _presuming that the Black Organization and the unnamed organization in Magic Kaito were two different ones_ ) shady organizations screwing over the world.

And if _that_ wasn't enough, she was going to be surrounded by teenage geniuses. And witches. Oh God, witches. If Akako was a witch, it was entirely possible that there might even be a world of supernatural that she might have to deal with.

And because her father was Nakamori Ginzo, Aoko highly doubted she could convince her father to just quit his job and move to Australia or something. Japan wasn't safe, England wasn't safe, America wasn't safe...exactly _how far_ did the reach of those shady organizations extend to?

"...ko-chan?"

Belatedly, Aoko realized that Yusaku and Ginzo were staring at her weirdly. She realized she must have looked _way_ too contemplative for a two year old and immediately sent them a wobbly smile. "Sorry, what was that? Aoko kind of spaced out…" she mumbled, rubbing the back of her neck sheepishly.

"I was asking if you would like to come meet Shinichi sometime," Yusaku repeated patiently. "He doesn't have that many friends, but I think you two would get along well."

"Friends?" Aoko tilted her head curiously. "Aoko wants to be friends, but Yusaku-oji-san lives very far away, right? How can Aoko be friends with someone in Tōkyō?"

Yusaku looked like he hadn't thought of that. Inwardly, she deadpanned. _This_ person was the great Kudo Shinichi's father? She knew that he was smart: the series had shown such, but from what Aoko could tell, he was just a dork. With a heart of gold, but still a dork. "...you can exchange letters?"

He was assuming that she could write at her age. Luckily enough, she could, but even so, Aoko allowed for herself to stare incredulously at the man for a moment. It looked like he wanted to squirm under the little girl's gaze, but nonetheless, he stood firm. "Okay," she deadpanned.

"...ah, really?" Yusaku looked relieved, and idly Aoko wondered if Shinichi was really _that_ unsociable of a child. "That's great. Shinichi only has some of his soccer friends, but when it comes to his other interests, there's not many who he can talk to." Translation: rather than Professor Agasa and his parents, Shinichi was a complete loner when it came to his nerdy tendencies.

Aoko nodded, absentmindedly wondering if Shinichi had met Ran, yet.

And that was how Aoko made her first 'friend'.

* * *

 _Haikei, Nakamori Aoko-san,_

 _How is the weather? It's hot over here. Kaa-chan told me that people should always talk about the weather before saying anything else, but that sounds so boring. Tou-chan told me that you like mystery novels too. Do you like Sherlock Holmes? He's my favorite. I want to be like him someday (but don't tell tou-chan that, because I tell tou-chan that I want to be like him)._

 _Your friend/penpal/fellow-mystery-lover,_

 _Shinichi :)_

* * *

Aoko couldn't help but stifle a giggle at the letter's contents. Although the kanji were all written painstakingly neat, the paper had been worn thin by eraser marks. She could even make out lightly sketched in lines, probably from Shinichi's mother, that were probably there to keep his sentences straight. The letter was amusingly blunt, and Aoko had to remind herself that despite everything, Shinichi was a toddler like her. It was impressive that he could write _any_ kanji at this age.

(Although she had to admit she was extremely amused when she realized that Shinichi had attempted several times to close the letter with ' _keigu_ ', the traditional closing that paired with ' _haikei_ ', but ultimately gave up and crossed it out. The characters for it _were_ rather difficult, she supposed.)

"Tou-chan, can Aoko go to the store to buy stationery?" She called.

"Not by yourself!" Her father called from upstairs.

Aoko scowled. Most Japanese were completely fine with letting their kids have more freedom. Neighborhoods were relatively safe, and so it wasn't uncommon to send children out to the stores to grab stuff. Unfortunately for her, Ginzo had to be the one exception to this rule. Even though he wasn't home often because he was trying to catch Kaito Kid, he was still fiercely overprotective of her.

She'd have to sneak out after he left for work, she supposed.

* * *

 _Haikei, Kudo Shinichi-san,_

 _It's been raining here for the past few days. The rain was nice at first, but now it's kind of annoying. Yes, I do like Sherlock Holmes. Although I'm no Holmes, I'd say I could do well as a Watson. I give you permission to omit the weather greetings from now on. ;) What are your hobbies?_

 _Your friend (feel free to use this word from now on: that's what we're going to be, right?),_

 _Aoko_

* * *

She woke up with a gasp. It was the middle of the night, and slowly her eyes adjusted to the darkness. Her heart was thumping loudly in her chest, and she squeezed her eyes shut, trying to get the whispers to go away. Her hands were gripping onto the covers of her bed tightly, creating slight creases in the fabric as she steadied her breathing. In, out. In, out.

Slowly, she lowered her head back onto the pillow and shut her eyes, willing herself to go to sleep. The whispers were still there.

( _She wasn't Aoko, she didn't deserve to be here. She didn't deserve a second chance. Why was she here? Why did nobody notice? She wasn't Aoko, she wasn't, but every time somebody looked at her they only saw 'Aoko'. She wasn't Aoko, she was an imposter, and the GuIlT wAs SwAlLoWiNg HeR wHoLe-)_

* * *

 **A/N: And that's a wrap! This will be a much more short, sort of drabble-ish story. :D There'll be itsy bits of Aoko's previous life's past in the beginning of the chapter. You'll be able to put things together pretty quickly.**

 **Thank you so much for reading! And, if you have time, please do drop a review and tell me what you think. Feedback is always appreciated. ^^**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thank you so much for the large wave of feedback from last time! I was so surprised to see how many of you are interested in this story already. :o**

* * *

 _He grabbed her hand, eyes pleading with her. "Trust me."_

 _And for one moment she paused, dreams of a future that could_ be _buoying her chest before reality set in again. She drew away, pretending not to notice the hurt that flashed in his eyes at the action. "I don't trust anyone. Not even you. I can't."_

* * *

A O K O

* * *

 **Age 3**

* * *

 _Haikei, Nakamori Aoko-san,_

 _Your kanji is really neat. Kaa-chan was really impressed when she saw. She made me practice my handwriting more. "Look at Aoko-chan's handwriting," she said to me. "Even her hiragana is neater." If we're going to be friends, can I just call you Aoko? You can call me anything. Just don't call me "Shin-chan" because Kaa-chan does that just to annoy me. You sound really smart. :) I'm sure you can be as smart as Holmes._

 _I like to play soccer, read mystery novels, and talk with Ran. Ran's my new best friend. She's kind of violent, but that's okay, because she doesn't mind me being smart. Ah, you're still my friend, Aoko! You should make friends with Ran, too. I think you two would get along. :)_

 _I have to go help Professor Agasa now. (I'll tell you more about him in the next letter.) Kaa-chan is calling, bye!_

 _Your friend,_

 _Shinichi_

* * *

Aoko was reading a book, drilling herself on more kanji when Ginzo knocked on the door. She frowned, but set the book down and called, "Come in, tou-chan." Her father opened the door, walking in silently and sitting down on her bed, highly aware of his daughter's inquisitive gaze. After waiting for a few moments, she asked awkwardly, "Is something the matter, tou-chan?"

Her voice seemed to almost startle him, the man's eyes flickering up to look at her in the eyes before hastily gazing down at his feet. His hands were clasped together as he asked quietly, "Tomorrow is your birthday, right, Aoko?" Aoko knew that Ginzo already knew this: the man had reminded her about it before _she_ even remembered it was coming up. Thus, she stayed silent, allowing for him to talk. "Well, before we go out to celebrate tomorrow...I figured that you're old enough to handle a trip somewhere. Would you like to go?"

"Go? Go where?" Aoko tilted her head innocently, although inwardly her eyes were apathetically scanning the man from head to toe. It wasn't like Ginzo to act as sobre as he was all of a sudden, and there must have been a reason for that. "Aoko can come. Aoko is a big girl," she declared, thumping her chest for theatrical effect.

"To visit your mother."

There was a long, awkward pause before Aoko jumped to her feet, simply saying, "Alright, let's go."

Ginzo gave her a small, rueful smile as he ruffled her hair. "Yeah, let's go."

.

.

She was sitting in the car, watching the scenery fly past her in a somewhat fascinated manner when Ginzo suddenly spoke up. The man had been silent for the majority of the car ride, and Aoko had assumed that it was because he was deep in thought, leaving the man alone. "You have her eyes," he said solemnly, eyes still firmly watching the road as he continued driving. If she hadn't heard him utter those words, she would've thought there was somebody else in the car who was talking to her. "Her name was Shizuka. Kanade Shizuka. She had beautiful eyes, sky blue ones that looked like yours. One of her grandparents were French, I think. We went to the same high school, and I always thought she was pretty quiet. Just like her name."

"Eventually, I joined the police department. She was two years older than me, and already in a higher position by the time I arrived. I learned that unlike my initial impression of her, she was a real spitfire," Ginzo recalled wistfully. "I tried wooing her for almost four years before she gave in and we started dating. Another three years later, and we decided to get married."

"What happened to kaa-chan?" Aoko asked quietly.

"Shizuka...Shizuka was always the best at infiltration. She got caught one day, during one of her investigations. I think it was about drug rings or something of the like. Shizuka and I never really discussed work at home." Ginzo's expression grew grim. "I promised her that I'd take care of you, Aoko. And I will. I'm sorry for not always being around, but…"

Aoko knew exactly what she had to do in that moment. Putting on a smile that only felt half-fake, she said cheerfully, "No, Aoko thinks that tou-chan is already a super great dad!"

"Thanks, Aoko. I love you." Ginzo's voice was fond.

Aoko bit her lip for a moment, but tried to hide her hesitation. "Aoko loves you too, tou-chan!"

* * *

 _Aoko had come to a conclusion about how to act in her real life after several restless nights. She wasn't the Aoko that everyone wanted and expected for her to be, but she could pretend to. She could pretend to be a normal child, to be the "Aoko" that she had seen so many times through the screen. She owed her father_ that _much, at least._

 _He deserved to have a normal daughter, but since he was already saddled with her...well, she'd have to make sure he was happy._

" _Aoko" was a simple name, just two simple characters that most first graders could write. She could be "Aoko" to the world. She was a great pretender._

 _(She was just unsure of one thing: if she continued this deceit, this mask, this "Aoko" act, would she lose herself in the process?)_

* * *

"Aoko, wake up."

"Five more minutes," she mumbled from under the covers, pulling the blankets further over her face. She was about to open her mouth and say "I" when she caught herself. Instead, the blue eyed girl grumbled, "Aoko doesn't want to wake up, yet. Go away, tou-chan."

"Aoko, today's November 15," her father said patiently, as if that was supposed to mean something to her without any explanation. She threw the covers off her face, giving him a pouty and somewhat deadpan expression.

"Just peachy."

"Who taught you to act so sassy?" Ginzo rolled his eyes and grabbed the girl's arm, literally hoisting her out of bed. "Today is _Shichi-Go-San_."

Aoko had to pause for a moment and rummage through several memories before she remembered hearing an explanation about the holiday from one of her father's female coworkers before. _Shichi-Go-San_ , literally "seven-five-three", was a traditional Japanese holiday that celebrated girls who were seven or three and boys who were three or five.

"Do I _need_ to wear the kimono?" She asked contritely, shuffling her feet awkwardly as she rubbed her eyes, yawning and trying to clear her blurry vision. Although it had been thrilling the _first_ time she had lain eyes on the brightly colored orange, maple-leaf patterned kimono, Aoko had soon realized what a _pain_ it would be to put on such a layered outfit. True, dressing in a children's kimono was much more simple than the expectations society would have of her once she became a woman, but it still sucked.

"It's tradition," Ginzo explained, and that single word was enough to stump her. Japanese were sticklers for tradition when they needed to be. Although in her past life, Aoko hadn't pegged Ginzo to be the type to stick to tradition, she had surprisingly found that her father was very much a traditional Japanese person in some ways.

In the house, they had both a _butsudan_ and a _kamidana_ : two things that Aoko had often seen in Japanese homes but never experienced having them in her house herself (at least, in her past life). The _kamidana_ was somewhat interesting for her to see: it was placed high up on the wall, with plates of fruit and other offerings set on it. Aoko wasn't tall enough to put any offerings on the Shinto altar, but Ginzo did it often enough. On the other hand, a _butsudan_ was a Buddhist shrine: the one that she was more used to seeing in anime. Carefully set on top of one of the elaborate gold-encrusted wooden shelves was a picture of her mother.

"Look after me, kaa-chan," Aoko whispered, bowing her head in respect at the altar as she lit a stick of incense and set it down properly. Although Aoko never knew the woman, she figured that she should pay her respect to her because _she_ was the one to give birth to her. _She_ was the one to give Aoko a second chance at life. "Aoko will do her best."

* * *

 _Sometimes, she wakes up in the middle of the night, and it's almost as if she could hear_ his _voice. She knew she was probably going insane, or of the like, but...but…_

 _Aoko glanced at the calendar in her room and murmured under her breath, "Happy Birthday."_

" _You remembered." She could almost hear his ghostly laughter, full of life. Full of happiness. Full of_ love _._

" _It's not like I remembered," she said heavily, squeezing her eyes shut. Unintentionally, a hint of longing trickled into her voice as she whispered, "It's just that I couldn't forget."_

* * *

Aoko scowled, her hands stuffed in the pockets of her cute white overcoat. She buried her face deeper into her pink muffler, cerulean eyes narrowing. She was standing in front of a clock tower, and it was almost ten at night. Her father wandered off a few minutes before to find a restroom, demanding for her to stay in front of the clock tower right next to the security guards. She hadn't minded at first, but now the cold was beginning to get to her.

 _Where_ was _that old man?_

The cold stung against her ears, and Aoko wished that she had worn earmuffs or a beanie. Or something. Japan could get extremely cold in the wintertime. Ginzo had gotten a day off, for once, and they had gone shopping the entire day. It was nearing Christmas, and Aoko had helped her father pick out gifts for some of his coworkers. She even got a gift for Shinichi: a special-edition Sherlock Holmes story collection that she had begged one of Ginzo's coworkers to buy while they were visiting England.

Shinichi probably couldn't read English yet, but she didn't doubt the kid's intelligence one bit. He'd figure it out: he'd definitely be motivated enough to learn English, considering how much he was raving about said story collection in a previous letter.

"A flower for your thoughts?" A slightly high pitched, but undoubtedly male, voice asked her smoothly. Before Aoko could even react, a white rose was presented in front of her face. Realization set in her features as she took the flower, fingering the petals thoughtfully with her fingers as she glanced upwards to meet his eyes.

"Is it normal for you to carry around random white roses?" Aoko asked the little boy she recognized to be Kuroba Kaito.

"I keep them around just in case I meet pretty girls like you," Kaito replied. Although his answer was somewhat cheeky, his eyes were sparkling with sincerity that left Aoko speechless for a moment. She fumbled for a reply for a moment.

"Such a charmer, aren't you?" Aoko rolled her eyes, but even though she tried to suppress it, she could feel a smile tugging at her lips. The boy caught this, and seeing the amusement in her eyes made him grin. He placed his right arm over his chest and bowed like a true gentleman. Aoko swore that if he had a hat on, Kaito would have tipped it at her.

"Kuroba Kaito at your service. I saw that you were all alone and figured you'd want a flower to cheer you up. And your name?"

Aoko was slightly impressed by his vocabulary. She knew that Kaito was intelligent from the series, but the fact that he could be so perceptive and well versed at a young age spoke volumes. Then again, most of the kids in Detective Conan were extremely smart. She'd have to get used to that. "Nakamori Aoko." She dipped her head in greeting. She added somewhat lamely, "Thanks for the...flower."

"No problem." Kaito seemed unaffected by her social ineptitude and opened his mouth to say something. However, before he could, Aoko spotted her father approaching the two of them. And Ginzo did _not_ looked pleased. Aoko inwardly cursed and whipped around, raising her hand and flicking Kaito in the forehead. The boy looked stunned, unsure of what to do, and she took advantage of that moment of silence to speak.

"Next time, I advise you don't randomly approach little girls who are standing by themselves. Only creeps do that. It's shady," she deadpanned before turning around and dashing towards her father. Aoko inwardly relished in the slightly surprised and slightly pouty look on the boy's face that she spotted out of the corner of her eye as she approached Ginzo.

"Aoko, who was that little boy?" Ginzo asked, glowering at Kaito. Aoko grabbed her father's arm and tugged him in the opposite direction. They had only made it a few steps when she heard Kaito's voice call to them.

"It's not creepy, _Ahouko!_ "

For a moment, she froze at that nickname. That was what Kaito had called "Aoko". Should she play along? Or should she not? She'd definitely meet Kaito in the future, but should she try avoiding him completely? However, at the same time, that would be depriving him of a best friend...and Aoko didn't have the heart to do that.

After being so naturally _her_ in her letters to Shinichi ( _not "Aoko", but_ her _)_ , Aoko had forgotten that she had to be "Aoko". She couldn't mess up the story, mess up other people's lives. And with that, she had made her decision.

Craning her head around just to meet his eyes, she called back, "Keep saying that, _Bakaito_ , keep saying that."

She was still clutching a white rose between her fingertips.

* * *

 _Haikei, Kudo Shinichi-san_ ,

 _Boys are idiots. No offense, of course. But they're idiots. Stupid. I don't understand them at all. Hmph._

 _It feels weird to write that in a letter, but I don't know how else to express my irritation. But they're annoying._

 _Ran, eh? It's surprising that there's a girl who can tolerate your geeky Holmes rants. She's a keeper, Shin-chan! I enjoy drinking tea and baking._

 _Tou-chan just read my letter over my shoulder and told me that I should add more details about my life. I stay in the house most of the time because of his overprotectiveness. I study and read books, mainly because there isn't much to do. Ah, I think I'll be asking tou-chan to sign me up for self defense lessons. If he comes complaining to your father, can you tell Yusaku-ojisan that Aoko totally deserves and should take self defense lessons if she wants to? That'd be helpful._

 _Don't forget to talk to me about Ran-chan and Agasa-san in your next letter._

 _Your friend,_

 _Aoko_

* * *

 **A/N: They're dorks. All of them. And EYYY KAITO, I WAS GOING TO SAVE YOU FOR NEXT CHAPTER, BUT HERE YOU ARE.**

 **It's so refreshing to write shorter OC stories huehuehue. And we have to have some angst/shady stuff going on to balance the sickening amount of fluff from Shinichi + Kaito lmaooooo.**

 **The next chapter is almost finished, tbh, so expect something soon~**

 **Once again, thank you all for reviewing/favorite-ing/following/reading! I really appreciate it, and you guys always manage to get me to act like a giggling idiot thanks to your encouragement. ^^**

 **Until next time!**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Oh wow, you guys bless me way too much. Twenty reviews already and we've only had two chapters thus far. Cheers to another update.**

 **Oh, and cheers to adorable young!Kaito because honestly idk how to write him LOL and am just going with the flow.**

* * *

 _She watched the man scan the contents of the envelope for several minutes warily. Although they were tentative allies, she couldn't trust them. In her line of business, she couldn't trust anyone. "Does it satisfy you?" She asked, crossing her arms over her chest and drumming her fingers against her arm._

" _Indeed. You've done well."_

 _She resisted the urge to snort incredulously. Of_ course _she did well. She was never the kind to do a job half assed. "The payment."_

" _Ah, yes. Remind me of the amount again?"_

" _Seventy-five thousand."_

* * *

 **Age 4**

* * *

When Aoko was told that they'd be moving into a slightly larger house, she was slightly skeptical at first. Nonetheless, she put on a pretty smile for her father, fluttering her eyelashes and congratulating him on his promotion to the head investigator for the Kaito Kid case. Her father had grinned, ruffling her hair and taking a swig of celebratory sake. He had promised that they'd move into the house by the next week, and Ginzo had proved his word was trustworthy.

Standing in front of a rather cozy looking modern Japanese home, Aoko hardly paid attention to the moving men who were heaving the last of their belonging into the house. The neighborhood itself seemed alright, and Aoko knew that they had moved close to an elementary school so that she could walk to school once she grew old enough.

She stepped inside of the house, observing it. She could see herself living in it. It was neat and organized into box shaped rooms: the typical style of modern Japanese homes. It was smaller than the houses she was used to in her past life, but she could live here.

She had settled in quite comfortably, unpacking some of her things. Aoko was about to look for Ginzo to ask if he wanted to order takeout when there was a knock on the door. She sighed, putting down her kanji book and walking leisurely to the door. Opening the door by a fraction of a centimeter, she asked, "Who's there?"

"Your new neighbors," the voice was muffled by the door, but she was able to make out their statement enough. Aoko opened the door, giving the guests a deep bow of respect.

"I am Nakamori Aoko, nice to meet you," she started. But, before she could say any other polite greetings, there was a strangled gasp from her neighbors. Aoko's eyebrows creased confusedly, and she looked up to see a friendly looking Asian woman with a boy hiding behind her. She wasn't really sure whatever was the matter until she heard the dreaded nickname.

" _Ahouko_?"

...ah, so that was how Aoko and Kaito originally became so close. Inwardly, Aoko wanted to groan and slap herself, but she refrained from doing so. "Kuroba Kaito, right?" She deadpanned. "Aoko takes back the 'nice to meet you' part." Turning to greet the woman beside him, who must have been Kaito's mother, she said politely, "Thank you for welcoming tou-chan and Aoko. Tou-chan is a bit busy on a phone call right now, though."

"It's no problem," the elder Kuroba's eyes were twinkling as a small smile tugged at the woman's features. "Aoko-chan, was it? Would you and your father like to come over for dinner? My husband and I decided that it would be nice to learn more about our new neighbors."

"Ah, um…" Aoko made sure to fidget a little and cast an unsure glance towards the inside of the house. "Aoko will have to ask tou-chan."

Mrs. Kuroba's eyes softened. "Of course, dear. But if you two decide that you'd like to, please feel free to come to our house for dinner."

"Thank you very much, Kuroba-san."

"Call me Chikage." The woman laughed, winking at Aoko and ruffling her hair. "We'd like it if you two could come."

"Not _all_ of us," Kaito muttered contritely.

"Kai-chan, I love you, but please be quiet when I'm talking," Chikage said with a strained smile. Aoko didn't think that the boy shutting up was possible, but there must have been something scary in the woman's eyes, for Kaito immediately complied.

Aoko suddenly found herself liking the Kuroba woman much more than before.

"We'll probably be there."

* * *

 _Haikei, Nakamori Aoko-san,_

 _Boys? Where did this come from? I'll have you know that girls can be just as annoying and weird, too. (You and Ran aren't that bad, though.) This may sound weird, but what do you look like? I keep calling you Aoko in my head, but it's weird without a picture. I had kaa-chan attach a picture of me in this letter so that this would be slightly less creepy. If we both share our photos, then it's a fair trade, right?_

 _Professor Agasa is my parents' friend. He lives near us, and he's always creating new inventions. He has white hair that kind of looks like a cloud, and he wears glasses. I don't know what you mean by "a keeper", but when I asked kaa-chan she started laughing. ? I hope you're not making fun of Ran, Aoko. I really do think that you guys would like each other._

 _And I told tou-chan. I think your dad called the day after, so your letter arrived not a moment too soon._

 _Your friend,_

 _Shinichi_

* * *

"But Aoko doesn't _want_ to go next door," Aoko whined, tugging on Ginzo's sleeve pleadingly. "Please, tou-chan? Aoko doesn't want to hang out with Bakaito. He's stupid."

"You know that's not true, Aoko," Ginzo grunted, and although a frown appeared on Aoko's face, she acknowledged that truth. He adjusted his suitcase, shifting his weight to his left foot as he explained, "But there's a Kaito Kid heist tonight, and I have to go to Kyōtō. In the meanwhile, Chikage-san will be taking care of you, so you have to be on your best behavior."

"Fine," Aoko grumbled, crossing her hands over her chest grumpily. She groused, "But tou-chan needs to take Aoko to Tōkyō next Summer like he promised."

"Yeah, yeah. The Kuroba household will take care of you well enough, kiddo." Ginzo ruffled her hair. "Toichi isn't home, but Chikage will watch over you. You like talking with her, right? Now, stop whining and let's move."

* * *

"It's a _dead_ , limbless animal that Aoko just spent the last two hours seasoning and preparing. The only difference between this and steak is that back when it was living, it lived in water," Aoko deadpanned, crossing her hands over her chest furiously. "Of _all_ things for you to be afraid of, Aoko can't understand why it'd be _fish_."

"Don't say that word!" Kaito yelped, inching away from said dish. Aoko had been staying at the Kuroba household for the past two days, and after two days of prodding and mothering from Chikage-obasan, Aoko had been dying for something to do. Luckily, it happened that Chikage-obasan was planning on going grocery shopping earlier in the day, and Aoko had jumped at the chance to help.

After selecting several ingredients and paying with money from her allowance (Aoko had stubbornly insisted on not having the elder Kuroba lady pay: she might not look like it, but she was a _grown woman_ , and it was humiliating having to rely on somebody else all the time), Aoko had taken the groceries home and proceeded to prepare dinner for the Kuroba household. Unfortunately, in her haste to prepare salmon (which Aoko hadn't had in _ages_ , no thanks to Ginzo's meat loving personality), Aoko had forgotten about Kaito's deadly fear of fish.

"You and your stupid ichthyophobia," Aoko mumbled, resisting the urge to throw the object closest to her (which happened to be a frying pan) at Kaito. Brandishing her kitchen knife with more confidence than Aoko thought she had, Aoko said firmly, "Either you eat this or you eat nothing. Now, out of the kitchen. Aoko needs to put a few finishing touches."

Kaito looked physically pained as he looked at the fish, but backed away as he eyed the kitchen knife wearily.

"Relax, it's not as if Aoko's going to throw this at you," Aoko snorted. Although the prospect was tempting, she owed Chikage-obasan more than that. Speaking of which…

Aoko's eyes turned thoughtfully to the ceiling for a moment. Kaito's father, Kuroba Toichi, wasn't present at the home at the moment because of some magic tour nonsense. As likely as that sounded, Aoko was sure that in reality, the man was in Kyōtō with her father. After all, there was another Kaito Kid heist coming tonight.

Ah, she shouldn't space out. Aoko shook herself out of her thoughts and instead focused on the food in front of her. Expertly, she slid the salmon off of the grill and onto a plate, scooping rice into three porcelain bowls. Balancing everything on a tray, she walked out of the kitchen. Setting down the fish right in front of a grimacing Kaito, she declared, "Dinner is served."

"Sadist," Kaito muttered under his breath. Although Aoko was secretly impressed by his vocabulary, a scowl still settled on her face. She made sure to kick him in the shin below the table once she sat down.

"Stupid," she shot back, chopsticks furiously snatching up a piece of fish.

"Now, now, both of you," Chikage chided, "if you're going to bicker, do it after dinner."

"Tch." "Hmph."

* * *

After dinner, Chikage had retreated to her room to work on something, leaving Kaito and Aoko alone downstairs. The two children exchanged glances before narrowing their eyes and turning away childishly. Aoko strolled forward, grabbing the TV's remote control from its place on one of the glass tables. Turning it on, she unceremoniously draped herself on the couch and began flipping through channels.

"What, are you going to watch some magical girl anime or something?" Kaito's voice sounded from behind her, and although his tone was somewhat derisive, his voice lacked the venom that he had spoken with earlier about fish.

"Fat chance," Aoko replied, not even bothering to turn around. Unknowingly, she switched back to speaking in first person as she replied, "I'm looking for the news. But don't underestimate magical girl anime, some of them are pretty decent."

"The _news_? What kind of girl _are_ you, _Ahouko_?" Kaito sat down beside her, and Aoko had to restrain herself from turning to her right to look at him in the eye.

"A strange one," she answered absentmindedly. Victoriously, she stopped flipping channels once she found the national news. Analytically, her eyes scanned the screen before she explained shortly, "It's a live broadcast of Kaito Kid's heist that's going on right now in Kyōtō."

"Ah, right. Your old man's trying to catch him, right?"

"Mm," Aoko made a sound of affirmation. Suddenly, a thought struck her, and she turned to meet Kaito's eyes for the first time in the whole day. "Hey, _Bakaito_ , Aoko was wondering...what do you think of Kaito Kid?"

"Eh, me?" The boy pointed at himself, taken aback for a moment. At Aoko's deadpan ' _yes, who else would I be talking to?'_ stare, Kaito paused thoughtfully. "I mean, I know that he's your old man's enemy and all, but I think he's pretty cool. His magic is really advanced: although I probably couldn't tell as well as tou-chan, I know that some of the tricks he pulls off would take a lot of work to perfect. Plus he's kind of cool, right? A phantom thief that runs through the night, dressed in all white?"

Now it was time to play the role of the dutiful daughter.

"But he's still a _criminal_ ," Aoko pointed out, making sure to sound offended at Kaito's words. Unlike what she expected, however, Kaito didn't draw back or retract his opinion.

"Yeah, so what?" Kaito shrugged. "He always returns the jewels after, right? There's probably some reason why he does that."

"Some reason _other_ than constantly making a fool of tou-chan?" Aoko growled.

"Well, if you think about it, he's the reason your Dad has a job…"

" _Stupid Bakaito!_ " she shrieked, throwing one of the couch pillows at him and huffing loudly. Her irritation was only half false: Aoko had gotten pretty attached to Ginzo, and the fact that he was being looped into this dangerous game of cat-and-mouse between the Organization and Kaito Kid was nothing short but frightening.

"Ow, that was uncalled for! You asked for my opinion, _Ahouko_ ," Kaito protested, throwing a pillow back at her. Blinking, she was too shocked to register that the pillow had landed square on her face. Then, once the realization kicked in, her eyes narrowed.

"You're going to pay for that," she said darkly, arming herself with several pillows.

"Bring it on," Kaito shot back.

* * *

"Do I even want to ask?" Chikage asked in disbelief for a moment as she took in the extremely messy room. Pillows were strewn all over the place, and several objects had been knocked over. Luckily, nothing of glass was broken, but the entire room was in disarray. Standing in the center of the room were two guilty looking, pouting children. Chikage shook her head. "I'm not going to ask," she decided. Then, glancing at the children again, she ordered authoritatively, "Both of you to your rooms, now. It's too late to deal with this right now. We'll talk about this tomorrow."

Both of the children silently filed past her, and once they _thought_ the mother was out of earshot, they began muttering to each other once again. "This was your fault." "No, it was yours." "It was _yours_."

Chikage twitched. " _Now_ ," she barked, and to her satisfaction, she heard hurried footsteps echo through the house as the two returned to their respective rooms.

* * *

 _Haikei, Kudo Shinichi-san,_

 _I think that Dad already told your family that we moved, since I received your last letter, but he probably didn't tell you about our neighbors. There's this guy named Kuroba Kaito, and he's the most irritating being that's ever existed. Well, I met him before briefly during Christmas time (remember that Holmes collection I sent you?). He didn't know me at all, and when he saw me standing there, he tried to give me a white rose._

 _A white rose out of_ nowhere _, Shin-chan. I told him that he looked like a creeper and the kid's had it out for me ever since. His Dad is a famous magician (Kuroba Toichi, have you heard of him?), and now he just loves to test all his new magic tricks on me. It was endearing at first, but now it's become annoying._

 _Tell Yukiko-san "Aoko supports ShinRan for life" for me, please._

 _And thanks. I'm starting self defense lessons after Dad comes back from another Kaito Kid heist (this one's in Tōkyō: maybe you can go see it?) You should learn too, by the way. We can suffer together (through our letters, I mean)._

 _Have to go, that Bakaito is going to do something stupid again if I stay away for too long._

 _Your friend,_

 _Aoko_

* * *

She had just finished mailing the letter and was returning back to the Kuroba household when she heard footsteps behind her. Without looking up, Aoko rolled her eyes and asked, "What do you want, Bakaito? Aoko doesn't feel like dealing with you right now."

"Who are you writing to?" The boy asked curiously, hands resting on the back of his neck casually as he followed her. It seemed as if her sour statement had completely flown over his head. "I never took you for the traditional letter type. I would have figured you to be the kind to communicate via email, or something." It was frightening how much vocabulary the boy knew at the age of five (she had learned that his birthday was in June, and now it was already autumn), already.

Aoko already knew how much of a genius Kaito and the rest of the Detective Conan characters could be, but it was still jarring nonetheless to see it in action. "He wrote to me initially through a letter, so I replied in the same fashion. And it just became a habit, I guess." She shrugged, and although she didn't notice it, her expression softened a fraction at the thought of her friend.

"You like switching between first and third person tense, huh," Kaito observed. She raised her eyebrows slightly, recognizing the curiosity in his eyes easily. The boy still hadn't mastered his poker face, so it was easy to discern all of the emotions in his expression. Aoko kept a neutral expression, shrugging and continuing to walk back to the house. She'd allow for him to come to his own conclusions.

( _She had to be Aoko, she had to be, but she could feel her real identity drowning...fading... fading far, far, far away-)_

Huffing and turning around irritatedly, Aoko called, "Hurry up, Bakaito! Chikage-oba-san doesn't like to be kept waiting, and Aoko isn't going to get in trouble because of you."

"Yeah, yeah."

* * *

 **A/N: Quickly addressing some stuff in the reviews!**

1) Didn't put **who Aoko was shipped with**. Eyyyy nice, _Reincheck,_ for pointing that out. You can ask any of my readers from other stories: **I am _all_ for ship teasing**. I notice that some of you even support Aoko/Shinichi (LOL awhhhh), and although I admit Kaito/Aoko will definitely be a crucial aspect of this story, REJOICE, FOR I SHALL MAKE YOUR HEARTS CONFLICTED. :D

2) Ah, yeah, in case you haven't noticed...this is an **OC reincarnated as Aoko**. ^^ She will definitely share attributes with canon!Aoko, and as you can see, she's trying to act like canon!Aoko but slips up a lot. Especially in front of Kaito, and Kaito is an observant cookie.

3) In case you haven't noticed, the **italicized parts in the beginning are flashbacks** to Aoko's shady past life ( _chibianimefan26_ has been freaking out over that, bless your soul). (Oh, she also noticed the **Vermouth** tag in the description that I shall now point out to other readers. Make your own conclusions, for they shall be answered prob next chapter.)

4) **WILL AOKO MEET SHINICHI IN RL?** Only time (and this authoress's inspiration/whims) can tell.

5) Whoops, thank you to _a_ for pointing out that " **Shizuka** " is apparently also the name of Heiji's mom. (Sorry, I'm trash: so _that's_ why the name sounded familiar.) Let's pretend that's not so, kk? ;)

* * *

 **Bless your souls omg. I would totally reply to all of you via PM but it's finals week (PRAY FOR ME) and I can't believe I'm even publishing this rn.**

 **Also, I started an OC fanfic recommendation blog! Link on my profile, check it out~**

 **Thanks for reading/favorite-ing/following/reviewing!**

 **Until next time. :)**


	4. Chapter 4

" _You don't have to go through this alone. Don't shut me out."_

 _She didn't respond._

" _You don't need to do this. You know your sister wouldn't want this."_

" _Shut_ up _," she snapped, turning around. "I have to. What other choice do I have? I have a meeting in a few hours, and if I back out now, I'm done for. I warned you. I told you that I wasn't a 'good' person, that I couldn't...I couldn't be the perfect best friend you want me to be."_

" _Who ever said that I wanted you to be perfect?" Somehow, while she wasn't looking, he had gotten extremely close to her. There was a smoldering look in his eyes: not of anger, not of sadness, but some kind of passion that frightened her. He drew closer, so close that if she leaned forward just a little bit more, she would've been leaning on his chest. There was something mesmerizing about his gaze that made her freeze, unable to think. "Who said I wanted for you to be my 'perfect best friend'? Who says that you aren't already perfect?"_

 _That startled her out of her trance, and she drew back, shaking her head. "I'm not," she murmured._

" _You are to_ me _."_

" _You're so cheesy."_

" _You still love me."  
_

" _Do I?"_

" _You're not denying it."_

" _Stupid," she snorted, although she could feel her cheeks burning. Eyes gazing out somewhere in the distance, she relented, "Alright, how about this: I'll make this the last time. I've already gotten somewhat bored with working with such distasteful people anyways. You, mister, are going to sit your ass down and wait for me to come back. Order some pizza or something in the meantime. When I get back, we can celebrate my graduation from shady business."_

" _Idiot," he muttered, although there was a fond smile on his face as he poked her forehead. She blinked, surprised at the sudden touch. "I'll keep you to your promise."_

* * *

 **Age 4**

* * *

"Ah, so _this_ is the illustrious Aoko-chan that Chikage and Kaito keep speaking of."

In traditional Japanese fashion, as had been drilled into her for the past four years, Aoko bowed deeply in respect at the man's greeting. Her heart was thrumming in her chest. Despite coming to terms with her reincarnation in a "fictional" world, no amount of preparation could stop her from blatantly staring, jaw agape, at the current Kaito Kid.

"Nice to meet you, Kuroba-san," she said numbly.

Kaito's father smiled genuinely; his resemblance to Kaito was uncannily similar. "You can just call me Toichi."

"Toichi-ojisan?" Aoko tasted his name on her lips, beaming at him innocently. "May Aoko call you that?"

"Of course. I heard from Chikage that you're learning a few tricks from her?" Amusement trickled into Toichi's tone as he watched her fidget under his gaze. Aoko had been hoping that Kaito's mother wouldn't mention the matter to anybody, but she supposed it was too much to hope for. After all, having a cute little girl come over to learn makeup at such a young age was bound to be something funny that one would share at the dinner table.

Aoko knew that in order to survive in this world, she would have to grow stronger. The organizations out there were powerful enough to arrange her murder without lifting a finger - and without ever getting caught. She had to learn as many skills as possible to prepare her for anything, and Kaito's mother knew plenty about makeup. The term, of course, was a euphemism for "disguise": hiding her appearance would be paramount in pulling off any future stunts.

Aoko wouldn't be able to fly under the radar of those organizations. She _knew_ it. If Murphy's law didn't screw her over with a heap of coincidences, Aoko would probably stumble into some kind of mess because of her family's undoubtedly notable connections.

She had to have _power_ : the power to protect herself, and the power to protect the people she loved. ( _She didn't have such power in her last life, and she wasn't going to let something like_ that _happen ever again.)_

Oh God, she could feel herself cringing at her own sappiness. _Damage control, Aoko_ , she reminded herself. _You're the person who picks up after everyone else's screw ups, since Kaito is just going to barrel on in life without you. You will not be proactive. You will not try to change too many things because your foreknowledge is the only thing that can stop this madness._

"Chikage-obasan is just giving Aoko a few tips," Aoko chirped. "Aoko wants to learn how to look like other people so she can scare Bakaito." Lowering her voice, she whispered conspiratorially, "Ne, Toichi-ojisan, can you keep it a secret from Bakaito? Aoko thinks it'd be funny to surprise him, sometime."

"Of course," Toichi agreed amiably, winking at her. "After all, a magician has to keep their secrets secret, no?"

"Yeah!" She agreed, pumping her fist in the air and beaming at him.

* * *

 _Haikei, Aoko,_

 _I can't believe you insinuated such a thing about Ran and I. Ran is my best friend, not a girl in one of those trashy romance novels that you and kaa-chan read. And_ no _, for God's sake, I am_ not _using a dictionary to look up all of these words._

 _Sincerely,_

 _Shinichi_

* * *

Kaito approached his neighbor stealthily, struggling to keep his mischievous smirk from appearing on his face. He was over at the Nakamori family's house since both of his parents were working. As he rounded around her, Kaito paused and studied her expression. There was something forlorn and solemn in her sapphire blue eyes that concerned him immensely. Forgetting his original intention of testing his newest magic trick on her, he instead blurted out, " _Ahouko_? What are you doing?"

She blinked, startled out of her trance, and turned to stare at him in surprise. It wasn't like Aoko to be caught off guard like that, much less show it on her face. Kaito bit his lip anxiously. Well, sometimes she pretended to be shocked. Kaito could tell: his _tou-chan_ had taught him how to read expressions, as learning to read expressions would help in faking and concealing his own like a true magician could.

Usually, Kaito pretended not to notice the sudden shifts in his best friend's demeanor. After all, she was a _girl_. Girls were weird by nature...or, at least, that was what his Dad and most of his male companions had told him. (Kaito found the statement scarily accurate: girls were both weird and _scary,_ especially his mom whenever she discovered the magic props scattered around Kaito's room.)

But this kind of melancholic brooding had to come to a stop. Kaito was getting sick of ignoring her slip ups, the little times when Aoko would laugh and say something much too intelligent for someone their age ( _Kaito was a genius, that's what they told him, but he kinda realized that Aoko was just as smart as him_ ). Sometimes, Aoko would act as if she was weary (and _wary)_ of the world; that kind of expression was something that Kaito only saw grownups wear.

"Sorry, Kaito. It's probably the rain." Aoko waved her hand in the general direction of the window. "I hate the rain."

Her guard was down, at the moment. Aoko often spoke in first person and addressed him as "Kaito" whenever she'd act a little more _real_. Kaito resisted the urge to call her out about it immediately, instead sliding up to stand beside her. "You do?" _With that kind of bittersweet smile?_

"Un." Seeing Kaito's unimpressed look, she elaborated, "It's annoying when my clothes get wet."

He doubted that her true reason was something so trivial. Kaito studied her expression for a moment, then grabbed her hand. She jerked back, startled. Slowly, her eyes trailed upwards to stare at him in surprise, her mouth forming a little 'o.' "Bakaito?" she asked cautiously. "What are you doing?"

"Let's go outside," Kaito proclaimed, snickering at her shell-shocked expression as he dragged her to the front door. Using the spare key that his mom always ensured he kept on him to unlock the door, he gently tugged her outside. Aoko was too surprised to protest or resist his coercing, following him obediently.

The first droplets of rain that fell on her face startled her out of her stupor. "W-what's this about?" She sputtered incredulously.

"Rain," Kaito gestured at the dreary gray sky with a broad smile, "might be annoying, but it's also fantastic."

"Fantastic?" Aoko repeated, her voice sounding deadpan.

"It's a magician's job to find the magic in ordinary things and transform it into something extraordinary for his audience to enjoy," Kaito cited his father carefully, grinning. And, without further explanation, he dashed forward, laughing. "Come on! Let's run."

" _Run?_ " Aoko echoed once again. He continued to jog in the direction of the park that they usually went to on the weekends. Turning around and sending her a raised eyebrow, Kaito was delighted to see that the girl had reluctantly begun to jog after him. "Bakaito, what are you trying to do?"

"Stop thinking and start running!" Kaito laughed, sending her a challenging look. She sputtered some random insults before chasing his disappearing figure.

Later, the sky cleared and they both delighted in the rainbow that streaked across the sky. Although she didn't physically voice her gratitude, Kaito could tell that Aoko was _happy_. Genuinely happy. And that was enough.

Even when _kaa-chan_ scolded them later for playing in the rain ("you'll get sick!"), Kaito felt as if it was worth it.

* * *

 _Ne, Shinichi,_

 _Do you like acting? I don't, but I think I'm good at it. Sometimes, I'm even good enough to fool myself._

 _Ah, sorry. I sound a little depressing today, huh?_

 _It's probably the rain: I love the rain._

 _I had forgotten how much I loved it. The sound of rain is soothing, and although it's slightly annoying when I get drenched, it's still worth it. Today, Kaito (you remember my neighbor, right?) and I played in some puddles. He may be an idiot (although that's debatable), but he's sweet when he wants to be. He reminded me of a few things._

 _Rain washes everything away, you know? It's as if the entire world is given a fresh new slate to work with. It's sad when the world gets dirty, again, though. Humans are always polluting our waters and skies. I want to keep it pretty._

 _Aoko._

* * *

 **I'm basically dead on FFN rip (I'm much more active on Ao3), but I fell in love with this series again and thought I should publish this.**


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